12/13/17 – Russellville, AR – Ambulance Stolen From St. Mary’s Medical Center – Ambulance Found Abandoned With Supplies Missing – Man Arrested At Homeless Charity Center

Article Source: www.couriernews.com

A man living in a homeless camp in Russellville is accused of stealing an ambulance at Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center.

Cory J. Maunz, 42, who lives in a camp operated by the Russ Bus, a homeless charity in Russellville, was arrested after police found the stolen ambulance abandoned on North Hampton Avenue with supplies missing from the back.

According to the police report, officers responded to a call of a stolen vehicle at approximately 7:48 a.m. on Sunday.

The employees on duty when the vehicle was stolen told officers they parked the ambulance under the awning of EMS Station 3 and went into the station to go to sleep. At approximately 7:40 a.m., one of the employees exited the station to take out the trash and noticed the missing ambulance. Both employees advised they had left the vehicle unlocked with the keys inside.

Surveillance footage showed the vehicle was stolen around 3:43 a.m. Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center advised officers that Maunz was released from the emergency room around that time.

Maunz was later located in a homeless camp after officers found a roll of gauze lying on a path leading to his cabin.

A representative of the Russ Bus got Maunz to open the door, and when asked if he knew anything about a stolen ambulance, Maunz allegedly looked down and shook his head “yes.”

Many but not all of the supplies were located inside Maunz’ cabin. The total value of items stolen is $177,270, according to the police report.

Maunz’ bond was set at $10,000 on charges of theft of property during felony bond hearings on Wednesday inside the Pope County Detention Center. He will appear in Pope County Circuit Court at a later date.

A representative with the Russ Bus expressed sympathy for Maunz, who he said was not acting according to his usual character.

“Unfortunately, homelessness and mental illness sometimes intersect,” the representative said. “He made a very poor decision which resulted in him going to jail. He won’t be coming back to our camp [if he gets out of jail], but that’s not saying we won’t help him. In order to live in our sanctioned camps, you have to tow the line because of what the city does for us. We require our people to maintain a certain level of behavior, but I don’t think this was his normal M.O.”

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